


Lighting Matches Just to Swallow Up the Flame

by heavenfellforyou



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, Superheroes, Superpowers, Supervillains, a little blood, but its brief, this is pretty sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-22
Updated: 2016-08-22
Packaged: 2018-08-10 11:54:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7843915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heavenfellforyou/pseuds/heavenfellforyou
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Harry and Louis were born special. They each had rare abilities that allowed them to do incredible things.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lighting Matches Just to Swallow Up the Flame

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: None of this depicts Harry or Louis's actual selves. It is a work of fiction.
> 
> Title from the song Gasoline by Halsey.
> 
> Songs I listened to while writing:  
> Talk Me Down - Troye Sivan  
> War of Hearts- Ruelle  
> Doubt- Twenty One Pilots  
> Gasoline- Halsey  
> So Cold- Ben Cocks  
> Heathens- Twenty One Pilots  
> Monster- Paramore

Harry and Louis were born special. They each had rare abilities that allowed them to do incredible things. Until Louis, Harry had never met anyone with an ability like his before.

It was an accident that Louis found out about Harry’s ability. Harry had been behind the bleachers during gym class, as he always was. He couldn’t participate in gym and risk people discovering his power. What would happen if they were running a mile around the track and Harry lost control? No one would be able to overlook Harry finishing his mile in less than ten seconds.

So he'd always sneak away as the class filed outside, and he would hide under the bleachers until the end of the period. He could at least run back and forth under the metal seats to let out some of his pent up energy. No one ever saw him.

Except for that fateful day one October.

He had immediately begun racing back and forth as soon as he was out of sight of the rest of his gym class. Only about five minutes could’ve passed before he heard a sound that made his stomach drop and his feet stop so quickly he tumbled to the ground.

“Oh my god,” a voice had said. Harry had sat up where he’d fallen and turned toward the voice. He saw a boy, probably about his age, with brown floppy hair and big glasses. Behind the lenses, the boy’s blue eyes were wide. “You-You were just- “

The boy was cut off when, in the blink of an eye, Harry’s hand had pressed against his mouth. “You can’t tell anyone. Understand? What would people say if they found out what I can do? What do you think they’d do to me?” Harry asked, his tone desperate.

The boy slowly raised his hand to Harry’s arm and nudged. Harry moved his hand away. “I won’t tell anyone. I swear,” the boy had whispered.

Harry was unconvinced and the boy must’ve been able to tell. Glancing behind him, the boy led Harry farther under the bleachers. “I promise I won’t tell anyone. You can trust me because…” the boy hesitated. “Because I’m like you,” he said. It was so quiet Harry had hardly heard him.

Brows furrowing, Harry surveyed the boy. “What do you mean you’re like me?”

The boy inhaled a deep breath and held his hand out. Before Harry could react, a small flame erupted from the boy’s hand. Harry fell backward. The flame spread up the boy’s arm, but he didn’t seem to be in any pain. 

Then, just as quickly as it had ignited, the flame diminished. The boy moved toward Harry and held out his hand, which was now perfectly normal. Harry took it. It was surprisingly cool, considering it had just been on fire.

“I’m Louis,” the boy – Louis – said, shaking Harry’s hand. 

“I’m Harry.”

~~~

To the world, Louis was now known by another name: Destructor. To Harry, though, he was still just Louis. Despite every horrible thing Louis had done in the last few years, Harry could never see him as anything other than that wide eyed boy under the bleachers. 

Deep down, Harry knew Louis wasn’t the same anymore. He’d hurt people and destroyed things. He used his power for evil and destruction. He seemed to feel no remorse for all the things he’d done.

Harry realized all of this. In the back of his mind he understood that Louis was not a good person, and maybe never was. But certain feelings - the ones that Harry had never felt for anyone before and that he’d fought hard not to feel - remained. 

Harry was in love with Louis. 

Whether Louis ever loved him back, Harry didn’t know. Either way, Harry had felt this way from almost the beginning of their friendship. Maybe it was that he was able to completely be himself around Louis. Perhaps it was that Louis fully accepted Harry and repeatedly reminded him he was not a freak and told him his abilities made him special.

Harry never told Louis about the feelings he had for him. It might’ve ruined the only real friendship Harry had ever had. He couldn’t risk giving up the one person who accepted him wholeheartedly. Maybe Louis would’ve said he felt the same way, or maybe he would’ve hated Harry for his feelings and ended their friendship.

Looking back on it, Harry figured it was probably wishful thinking to consider Louis might’ve liked him back. It was obvious now that he probably didn’t have any feelings at all.

Harry never understood why Louis decided to use his ability the way he did. The first time Louis ever destroyed anything with his powers, it had been an accident. It happened a year after the boys had met. He had been practicing summoning the flames and controlling them, when things got out of hand. He’d called Harry crying and told him he’d burned down a barn with animals inside. He’d seemed heart broken. 

Harry told him to come over to his house immediately. He did, and they’d laid in Harry’s bed as Louis cried for hours, their arms wrapped around each other. 

“It was an accident. You’re not a bad person, Louis,” Harry had told him. He kept repeating those words, not knowing what else to say, but hoping it would be enough to convince Louis. Thinking back on it, Harry wondered whether it really had been an accident. He wondered if Louis burned the barn down on purpose, and cried because he’d been frightened of what he was capable of. Maybe he hadn’t felt guilty or frightened at all, and only cried to convince Harry it was an accident. Harry tried not to think about it too much. He felt sick to his stomach when he did.

For the next three years after that, Louis hardly used his powers; at least, not that Harry knew about.  
When he did begin using his powers again, it was no accident any time Louis set something on fire. 

Harry still wasn’t sure what had set Louis off; what inspired the path of destruction and devastation. It started with Louis burning his own house down. Then, he burned down the rest of his neighborhood. Then, he began burning down buildings all around town, making his way to Harry’s house.

Harry remembered running outside so see the most petrifying sight he’d ever laid eyes on. Louis walked down the center of the road, completely engulfed in flames, throwing balls of fire at random houses. 

He saw Harry and went toward him. Harry stepped backward without meaning to. Louis stopped. The flames disappeared and he began making his way toward Harry again.

“Louis. What- Why are you doing this?” Harry choked out.

“Harry, I have a proposition for you,” Louis said, ignoring Harry’s question. Harry didn’t respond, he just stood dumbstruck.

Louis must’ve realized that Harry wasn’t going to say anything so he continued on. “I want you to come with me, Harry.”

“Come with you? Where are you going? Lou, I don’t understand. Why are you doing this?”

“I’m leaving and I want you to come with me. Please come with me, Harry,” he’d begged. Harry hesitated. He didn’t understand what had happened to make Louis do all of this. He didn’t understand why Louis needed to leave. 

Despite the fact that he knew Louis would be a wanted criminal for what he’d done, despite the fact he had no idea where Louis was going, a part of Harry wanted to go with him. He’d thought about running away with Louis hundreds of times before. In his mind, though, it had never gone like this.

“Lou, I can’t go with you,” Harry said. 

Fire crackled between Louis’ fingers. “Why not?”

“What about my parents? I can’t just leave them. What about school? I’m in the middle of getting my degree and you want me to quit?” Harry asked. The realization that he was about to lose Louis struck him, but he knew he couldn’t leave. “Louis, please don’t go. I don’t want to lose you. Just- Just stay here. I don’t know what’s happened but we’ll figure everything out. Everything will be fine,” Harry had said in the calmest voice he could muster.

For a moment, they both stood in silence. Louis seemed to be contemplating Harry’s words. “I’m leaving, Hazza,” he said gently. “I would rather not leave without you, but I will. This is the last time I’ll ask, then I’m going. Harry, you’re my best friend, please come with me.”

Harry began crying then. “I can’t, Louis. I’m sorry, but I can’t.”

Louis’ expression shifted. He regarded Harry coldly and breathed out slowly. “Fine. Goodbye, Harry.” He’d turned, summoned his flames, and walked back the way he came, a glowing figure in the darkness.

~~~

Harry didn’t see Louis for two years after he left, except on the news. They never specifically said that it was Louis starting the fires throughout the United Kingdom, but Harry knew. Other people knew it as well. Louis was a phenomenon on social media, being referred to as the Destructor, since no one actually knew who he was. Harry kept updated on sightings of Louis. He couldn’t help himself. 

He figured he’d never see the boy he loved, in person, again. He’d have to follow the boy’s movements through the internet. Until one day when he’d been watching the news at the flat he lived in alone and the news station switched to a helicopter view of live footage from London, only a short way from where Harry lived. Buildings and cars were on fire, people were running around in panic, and in the center of the screen, was a flaming figure. 

“Louis,” Harry breathed. He was up and out the door without thinking. It was a bad idea but he didn’t care. He needed to see Louis, to talk to him. Maybe he would be able to talk sense into his old friend. It didn’t matter. Harry just needed to see him.

He ran faster than he’d ever run. Before he knew it, Louis was in his line of vision. It was quite the sight to behold, Harry thought. Louis threw fire around in all directions, completely engulfed in flames himself. 

Cop cars encircled Louis. Police officers had their guns trained on him. In a flash, Harry was beyond the wall of police and standing behind Louis, enough distance between them so Harry wouldn’t be burned by the other boy’s flames.

He could see the officers’ eyes widen, their positions faltering. Louis noticed, and looked around at all of them.

“Louis,” Harry said, just loud enough for Louis to hear him. Louis spun around and his fire dimmed as he spotted at Harry. 

“Harry.”

“You need to stop, Louis. You’re hurting people,” he said and paused. “You’re hurting me. I can’t stand hearing about all the horrible things you’ve done, but do you know why I keep up with the news about you? Because at least then I know you’re still alive; that you haven’t been shot down by police or somehow managed to burn yourself up.”

“Your concern is touching, truly,” he said with a twisted smile.

“I don’t understand. Why have you done this?” Harry asked gesturing to the burning city around them. “Why have you spent the last two years destroying anything you can get your hands on? This isn’t you, I know it’s not.”

The smile disappeared from Louis’ face. “You don’t know me,” he said, taking a step closer. “Go home, Harry. There’s no reason for you to be here.”

“If you won’t quit, then I do have to be here. I might be the only one who can stop you,” Harry said. Louis only laughed.

“You think you can stop me?” he scoffed. “Leave, before you hurt yourself.”

“No! Just…” Harry paused, pulling at his hair. How could he talk any sense into Louis? Maybe if he knew what was causing Louis to set the world on fire, he would know what to say. “Please tell me why you’ve done all of this.”

Louis’ flames grew ever stronger. “You want to know why I do all this? Why I’ve decided to take myself down, and the world along with me? It’s because of you! Every bad thing I’ve done in the past two years has been because of you!” The force of Louis’ words, paired with the fact that his flames were steadily growing, made Harry take a step back.

~~~

“Me?” Harry said. He seemed completely taken aback.

“Destructor! Surrender yourself and we won’t have to kill you!” An officer yelled to Louis. Louis barely heard him.

“A year ago, when I burned our city, I did it because of you. My parents...I told them... “ He stopped, trying to decide whether he should tell Harry everything. Maybe now was the time to finally tell the truth. He hardly had anything to lose, anyway. “I told them that I was in love with you.”

Louis could hear Harry’s sharp intake of breath but Harry said nothing. He seemed to be waiting for Louis to say more. “They were disgusted. I entrusted them with this secret I’d been keeping for years, and they made me feel terrible for it. Do you know what they said? They said they could probably find help for me, that I could be fixed.”

Harry was crying. Louis went on. “I burned the house down with them in it. Then I burned everything all the way from my house to yours, for no reason other than I was angry. Then, when I asked you to go with me, and you refused, I lost it.”

“Louis, I…” Harry couldn’t seem to find the right words to say. 

“I did it all for you. So you could see what you did to me that night,” Louis said, flames bursting. 

“Louis, you were in love with me?” Harry asked, his tone disbelieving. 

“It doesn’t matter now! Nothing matters now!” Louis yelled, flames growing.

“Destructor! Stand down, or we’ll be forced to shoot!” The officer yelled again.

“Louis, please calm down or they’re going to shoot you,” Harry pleaded. 

“Don’t tell me what to do, Harry!”

“Last chance! Stand down!”

“It’s all your fault!” Louis screamed at Harry. Flames erupted from Louis and shot up to the sky. He heard gunshots.

“No!” Harry yelled. Louis expected to feel the bullets hit him, but then Harry was in front of him. Louis’ flames disappeared as Harry fell to the ground. 

“Harry!” he shouted, dropping next to the boy and pulling him into his own arms. Louis looked into the boy’s bright green eyes that were wet from crying. He was staring at Louis.

“I love you, too,” Harry said, then he went still. They were sitting in a pool of his blood.

“No! No, please!” Louis hardly noticed the tears that streamed down his own cheeks. “Hazza, please,” he whispered, pressing his face into the other boy’s neck.

Then he felt the tip of a gun pressed to his back. He needed to get away. Lifting his head, he pressed a kiss to Harry’s cheek and stood. 

“Turn around, slowly,” the officer behind him said. He did as he was told and looked at the officer, expression blank. 

Louis erupted in flames, engulfing the officer as well. Before the other officers could react, Louis threw fire at each and every one of them. They killed Harry, they deserved it. He threw fireballs toward the police cruisers that surrounded him, not caring if there were people inside. 

With all the commotion, Louis was able to walk out of the circle of police. He made his way out of the city, lighting up anything that stood in his way.

After that night, he went as far away as possible. No one knew where he went and he was never heard from again. 

After that night, Louis never used his powers again.


End file.
